Echorer Dalna

J ackfruit has always been a crucial element in every Bengali kitchen. The vegetable, locally called echor, is famed to be the vegetarian equivalent of chicken or even mutton. The unripe jackfruit, once cooked and married with spices, takes on a similar meaty soft texture that many liken to non vegetarian dishes. 

Echorer Dalna is one such delicacy that has been a proud part of West Bengal’s culinary history. Much like the ubiquitous potato, jackfruit too has the wonderful quality of soaking in all flavours and spices from the gravy and become a flavour bomb in itself. The unripe version is generally green in colour and needs to be diced into medium-sized cubes before cooking.

Echorer Dalna has a very similar preparation to the non vegetarian Bengali chicken curry. Once the onions are well tempered with a generous dollop of ginger and garlic paste, chopped tomatoes and chillies go into the mix. Garam masala, red chilli powder, cumin and cardamom powder are also added. Potato wedges are also added to the dish in order to increase the body of the dish. The term ‘dalna’ refers to anything that has been prepared in a one-pot sort of way. 

Echorer Dalna is often served during Kali Puja (one of the few Bengali festivals that require a non vegetarian holy offering), instead of the hackneyed mutton or chicken option. Often, Echorer Dalna is cooked with shrimps or kucho chingri. This special combination is considered a culinary delicacy in East India and is served as the perfect accompaniment to a steaming bowl of rice.